Two years ago, Tom Kearney and Scott Williams knew they had a complicated job ahead when they committed to building a wintertime ice skating rink on the sand in Redondo Beach.

Once they won the city’s support for the project at Seaside Lagoon – a manmade municipal beach that is dormant in the winter months – they had to employ a cooling system that would keep the ice frozen even on warm days and bring in enough sponsors and paying visitors to keep the unique amenity afloat.

Kearney and Williams operated Seaside Ice for two seasons under a deal with the city that sets rental rates through 2012-13 and establishes who would pay for what part of the electrical bill.

But it’s unclear whether the pair can pull off a third season for Seaside Ice, which in its first year attracted widespread media attention.

With sponsorships and attendance down for the skating period that ended in January, the rink operated in the red, and Kearney and Williams say they’ve yet to achieve the sponsorships necessary to open in November.

“It’s an ambitious undertaking,” said Kearney, who also runs a filmmaking company called Pinch Hit Productions. “We just had a real hard season last year. … When the economic downturn started, some of our key sponsors actually withdrew.”

And on top of that, the number of paying skaters fell from an estimated 25,000 the first year to 17,000 the second season, they said. Gross income was reportedly down by $135,000, leaving the operators $165,000 short of their $425,000 revenue goal.

“Most of our sponsors from the first and second years are still planning on supporting us,” said Williams, an award-winning skater who operates another company that produces live shows and ice skating events.

“Really, it’s a question of, can we add the sponsors we need so we can continue?”

Kearney said Friday that a few new donors had stepped forward, and that the pair has “some balls in the air” that could bring in more revenue. They’ve said they need a minimum of $150,000 in cash sponsorships before committing to the third skate season.

But in addition to seeking more sponsors, Kearney and Williams have proposed the city offer additional assistance – a request that hasn’t gone over well with some at City Hall.

In a report detailing Seaside Ice’s financial struggles, they float several proposals, including the possibility that Redondo Beach waive rental payments, cover the expense of powering the rink’s chilling units and forgive a $50,000 loan that was to be repaid over the course of the contract.

While acknowledging Redondo Beach faces its own budget issues, Kearney said his hope is that the report at least starts a dialogue.

Instead, it drew anger last week from two City Council members, who argued the operation doesn’t merit any more help from the city.

In preparation for Seaside Ice’s opening season, the city paid nearly $150,000 to upgrade the swimming lagoon’s electrical system, with the understanding that Seaside Ice would pay back $50,000 of that amount over the course of the contract. Redondo Beach also has agreed to write off annually the costs of janitorial supplies and maintenance, as well as electricity expenses associated with the lagoon office and grounds.

According to city staff, Seaside Ice paid its bills for the first season but still owes $4,000 in rent for the 2009-10 session, along with $27,882 for rink refrigeration expenses.

Councilman Pat Aust, who opposed the contract from the start, said he favors canceling the deal and recouping the costs.

And Councilman Steve Aspel criticized the pair’s report, parts of which cast doubt upon the city’s support of the operation and indicate “last-minute city requests and conditions” may be responsible for cost overruns.

“They blamed everybody but Jesus Christ himself in this proposal,” said Aspel.

While Aust indicated Seaside Ice has violated its contract, staff members stopped short of making that determination. Mike Webb, the city attorney, said his office would review the terms of the deal and offer an opinion.

Recreation and Community Services Director Mike Witzansky, who worked with Kearney and Williams to bring Seaside Ice to the waterfront, called the situation “unfortunate.”

“We invested a significant amount of money on the capital side to make this happen. We scrambled. We expedited everything,” he said. “Really what’s sort of changed here is the economy. … We were hopeful that the program would be sustaining.”

If the city can’t assist financially, its leadership may be able to convince potential sponsors that the venue is worth supporting.

Mayor Mike Gin said he wants to help Kearney and Williams find private donations, acknowledging they’re dealing with financial problems just as the city is.

“To me,” the mayor said, “Seaside Ice has been one of the most exciting attractions in the harbor in recent years.”

Join the Conversation

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@scng.com.